A Place of Many Trials
by platypuslattes
Summary: When Voldemort returns and searches for Hermione, she, the Trio, and DA are on the run doing whatever they can to stop The Dark Lord. After breaking it off with Ron, things seem to get worse. However, Fred comes to the rescue. Will they be able to last through the chaos? Or will the young wizards survive at all?
1. Ron and Hermione

Hermione sighed in the Gryffindor common room. The red-orange fire danced and came alive with popping and crackling sounds. She had been listening to it with her eyes closed, concentrated on the noises she heard. '_Pull yourself together, Hermione'_ was being said over and over in her head. _'Why are you doing this to yourself?' _she thought. _'You need to say something'_ said her conscience.

Hermione and Ron were dating at the time, holding hands in the hallways, kissing each other goodnight, the whole deal. But lately, she had been falling out of love with him, and even questioning if she had been in love with him at all, even though they hadn't even said the words to each other yet.

"Think happy thoughts,"she whispered to herself, then scoffed.

"Happy thoughts don't exist," Hermione mumbled again.

Then a voice came, startling her.

"Happy thoughts? What about happy thoughts?" Ron came down the stairs, beaming brightly at his girlfriend.

Hermione still stared at the fire.

"Are you alright?" Ron asked, gently touching her arm. Hermione jumped, her entire body suddenly filled with aching fear. No more than a split second later it vanished.

"Uh… yeah. I'm sorry." She shook her head, trying to remember where she was, who she was with, and what she was doing. "I was just talking to myself."

"Oh." Said Ron. "Well, I… I need to talk to you."

Hermione quickly replied to reduce all of Ron's suspicions of her feelings.

"Okay, yeah. Sorry, I was… anyway, what do you need to talk to me about?"

Ron fidgeted in his seat a bit, cleared his throat, wiped his nose (even though there was nothing to wipe), and blurted the words out.

"I love you." He said, and his eyes darted every which way, just to avoid Hermione's eyes.

"Oh, shit!" She replied, and then covered her mouth immediately.


	2. Malfoy and Mashed Potatoes

Hey, guys. I know I don't have many follows (like at ALL), but I had a request to post another chapter, so I am. Thank you for reading, and reviews are always appreciated! Thanks!

"Wh-what?" Ron mumbled. He was in shock. Was she surprised? Happy? Sad? Pissed off? Disappointed? Bored? He didn't know in the least bit.

"I-I mean, I…" Hermione's mind was running in circles. She became dizzy, her vision blurred, and suddenly she was falling off the couch.

"Hermione!" Ron called. His voice sounded as if he was calling her underwater, fogged and muffled. "Hermione!" He said again.

She came to, but slowly. After about ten minutes, she recovered, lying in Ron's strong arms. Hermione looked up at him, his eyes filled with worry, and now sadness.

"I, um… Sorry…" She said. She tried to sit up, slowly and carefully. Hermione turned her back to the couch, now in her original spot.

"Are you alright?" Ron asked, his voice shaking. Then she knew. Hermione knew that he understood her response, and why it came out that way.

"Why… I thought we were okay…" He said, his voice trailing off. Ron looked humbly into the fire in front of him, realized he was sweating, and that Hermione was ice cold. He grabbed her hand to warm her.

"I know, I just…" She sighed lightly. "We've been dating for a while now, and my feelings for you have… diminished. And… I'm starting to wonder if I ever had feelings for you at all."

"Oh," Ron said. "I… understand." He didn't, however. Hermione felt his body tense. His hand slowly let go of hers and slid back onto his thigh. She knew what was coming: the awkwardness, the distance, the silence during meals, and the embarrassment that this happened at all. She did this to him, and she felt terrible.

"You don't." Hermione said bluntly. She looked into his eyes, which were laced with tears. A single one fell, and she watched it roll down his cheek and drop onto his jeans. He noticed her watching it.

"No… I don't," Ron mumbled, his voice starting to shake. "But… I-I could try to fix this. I promise I'll do anything it takes." More tears fell down his face. He knew there wasn't anything to fix, unless Hermione fell in love with him like he was in love with her.

"Ron," Hermione said gently, looking into his eyes. "I can't say I'm sorry because I know you won't believe me, but I am. Please try to remember that. And Ron, I love you so much. I care for you so much, but I can't do this right now."

Ron stared at her, his eyes suddenly producing more and more tears. Hermione could tell he was holding in sobs, hard ones, but he let soft ones escape.

"I know you love me, I mean, not in that way. I'm trying to remember that. I… I need to go. I'm sorry." Ron got up and left up the stairs before Hermione could stop him and say what she wanted – that he didn't have anything to be sorry for, and that he was the perfect boyfriend, and that he made her so happy, anyway.

But she knew she had broken him. And Hermione didn't know how long he would be.

"So… what happened with you and Ron?" Ginny asked, eating her potatoes. It was dinnertime, and Ron had not shown up for the 10th time in a row.

"You would think she'd figure it out by now!" Harry teased, nudging Ginny with his elbow. She shoved him back, and he fell out of his seat.

"What the fuck?" Harry yelled. Ginny and Hermione just laughed.

"But seriously. What _exactly_ happened?" Ginny asked. She took another bite of her potatoes and talked with her mouth full. "I mean, he was so good to you - not that I'm pissed or anything – but I just don't get it. You guys were so cute!" Ginny accidentally spit some mashed potatoes at Hermione.

"Ugh," Hermione said as she wiped it off. Ginny looked embarrassed. Hermione laughed a bit too loud at that. "Well, I know. We seemed to be getting along nicely, and we were. I just realized sooner or later that I didn't love him. He was already in love with me, and I thought I felt that with him, but I guess I didn't. I was contemplating the decision to break up for over a week."

"Hermione, he's a mess," Harry said, getting up off the floor and picking up a roll to take a bit out of it. "I mean, he comes to breakfast and lunch and all, but," Harry swallowed his mouthful of bread. "Ron isn't himself anymore. He hasn't showered in a while – which us boys are suffering from in the dorms, by the way – and when he comes downstairs _to _eat, he _doesn't_ eat. At least, not as much as usual."

Not eating a lot was a dreadful sign of depression for Ron. He always ate, even when Lavender dumped him. Hermione never liked her, anyway.

"I didn't mean to do this to him!" Hermione yelled, louder than intended. She lowered her voice again. "I didn't mean to do this to him. I'm sorry." Hermione finished her half-eaten dinner and stood.

"Hermione, wait." Ginny said, standing. "We didn't mean to make you feel bad, I promise."

"I just can't believe I did this to him!" She said, ready to walk away. An unpleasant voice spoke up.

"Aw, did Weaselbee get dumped by his geeky girlfriend?" Draco Malfoy made a rude comment as he interrupted, as always.

"Malfoy, shut the fuck up." Hermione said bluntly. She watched him as his eyes went wide, not expecting her words.

"Well, we have an angry one here, don't we?" He said, smirking. Harry stood and pulled out his wand, but Hermione motioned for him to put it down.

"Where are your friends, Malfoy? Have they finally decided that you're a fucking prick?" Hermione said strongly. Students were starting to stare. No one ever heard such words come out of Hermione Granger.

"Actually, they're still eating." He motioned to them. Hermione glanced over as they "politely" waved at her with smug looks on their faces.

"Do you want to wear your food tonight, Malfoy?" She asked as she started to circle him. "Because I will gladly, _gladly_ make sure those mashed potatoes match your hair."

"Let's finish this another time, _Granger_." Draco said. He twirled around and marched back to his friends, shoving them aside and sitting down with a pissed look on his face.

Surprisingly, all of the students started to clap, giving a standing ovation. Even Malfoy's close friends were laughing until they couldn't breathe.

"I didn't know you had that in you!" Ginny said. Harry was speechless. Hermione laughed.

"Let's just go back to our dorms. I'm sure Ron would love to hear this story."

They left together, laughing.


	3. Weasleys and Weasleys

Hey, guys! Here's more of the story. I'm trying to find a way to bring more depth into it. I'm not so good at that. Please be patient with me. Reviews are always appreciated!

* * *

"Hey, mates!" The twins said together as they walked in the Gryffindor common room. Technically, they weren't allowed inside Hogwarts having graduated, but that would never stop them.

Fred and George heard that Ron was feeling under the weather by Ginny, so they decided to surprise him.

"Oh, Merlin," Ron mumbled as he started to come downstairs. When he saw the twins, he tried to retreat, but they both took him by the arm and pulled him down the stairs. "Why did you guys invite them?" Ron asked Harry and Ginny.

"They didn't!" Fred said.

"We just came by ourselves." George responded.

"We figured it would be sort of a prank, in a way." Fred said.

The twins pulled Ron over to the couch and set him down in front of the fire. He groaned.

"I swear, we didn't do this." Harry said, holding up his hands.

"Seriously." Ginny agreed.

"Don't you think you guys could have at least _warned_ me?" Ron whined to his brothers. They rolled their eyes.

"Do you know us at all?" Fred and George said in unison.

"Apparently not," Ron mumbled. He was already uncomfortable, knowing that Hermione would be coming back from the library soon, and being around his mischievous brothers. "Can you guys stop talking at the same time?"

"No," Fred and George retorted. "Hey, Hermione!"

Hermione walked in through the door and saw the twins. She immediately knew there was going to be trouble. Fred and George came up and hugged her tight.

"Hello, guys…" She said slowly. "What are you two doing here, exactly?"

"Just came to say hello." Said George, sitting on the ground next to Ron.

"And to cheer up Ron," Fred whispered to Hermione, putting an arm around her. "We heard about what happened; Ginny wrote us."

Hermione nodded and gently took Fred's arm off of her. He frowned, confused.

"Hello, Ron," Hermione quietly said, sitting down. Fred sat down next to her while Ron eyed them mysteriously.

"Hey," He replied. Ron had been feeling better, and was very happy about that, which lifted his spirits even more. Tonight, he wanted to show Hermione that he was starting to feel that way. He smiled at her, and she smiled back.

"This party's already boring," George drawled. "Good thing I brought FIREWHISKEY!" He grinned widely as he pulled it out of his bag and laughed while everyone started cheering. Even Ron was excited.

Soon, everyone was taking swigs of the three bottles George brought. Hermione and Fred hadn't taken a single sip. She wondered about his actions, since Fred was usually like this as well, even if deep down he despised the stuff.

Harry, Ginny, George, and Ron began to get woozy, and became loud. More Gryffindors heard the ruckus and joined. In a short amount of time, the entire common room was filled with drunken Gryffindors. Even Neville included himself, which Hermione thought about. She shrugged it off, assuming George must have done something to it.

"Want to get out of here?" Fred asked. Hermione realized he was talking to her, and responded.

"Yes, definitely. I just don't want to be caught wandering the corridors."

"Oh, it's alright. I stole the Marauder's Map from Harry's trunk a while back. Never noticed, lazy git." He smiled and laughed at his own charm.

"Alright," Hermione said, standing up. They walked through the portal and into the hall. "Where to?"

"Anywhere, I guess." Fred replied. "Let's go this way." He pointed down a long corridor and started walking. "So, how are you?" He asked.

"I'm fine. It's Ron that needs to be talked to." She said, looking at the floor.

"Well, yeah, but I mean, how do you feel about all of this?" She looked at him strangely. "What?"

"You're never this caring. Are you okay?"

"Of course." Fred said quickly. Hermione knew something was up. She never knew Fred as anything but a prankster who didn't care about personal stuff. Cheering up Ron was one thing, but personally asking someone questions? Weird. Hermione chuckled.

"You're not." She said, looking up at him. He towered over everyone, both him and George. They were about 6'1"-6'2", and that was tall enough for Hermione.

"Okay, fine, I'm not," Fred said. "At all. Angelina dumped me for some weird guy who lives in Germany, and ran off. She told me all of that through a letter. She had to use the regular post office, apparently." He sighed. "I just miss her."

"I get that," Hermione sighed. "Viktor left, too. Went back to wherever he came from. Ukraine? I don't know. Anyway, he just left. Not that we were amazing together or anything. It's just been him and Ron in my life, and that's it."

Fred chuckled.

"You would think you'd have somebody better than a guy who can't even pronounce your name correctly."

"What?"

"I mean, come on. I don't mean to be rude. I just think that you deserve better, is all." Fred said.

He heard a thought come into his mind: _Like you._


	4. A Bloody Dean Thomas

_Like me? _Fred thought. He was about to say something to Hermione when a bloody, panting Dean Thomas bolted down the corridor.

"He's back!" Dean said as he stopped at the two, hands on his knees and breathing hard.

"W-what?" Hermione forced.

"He's back!" Dean said, collecting his breath. "Voldemort. He… he's made an entrance at Azkaban. Death Eaters are surrounding the school…" He took another deep breath. "We're fucked."

Hermione and Fred were speechless. She struggled for air.

"Okay," Fred started. "Go to the Gryffindor common room. The password is 'Wingardium'. Alert the others, and wake everyone except the Slytherins. Merlin knows what they'll do."

Hermione started shaking; Fred grabbed her hand.

"Tell everyone to get ready. _Be careful._" He took a breath. Dean was nodding the whole time. "We know what we're dealing with somewhat, but there may be more than before."

Dean nodded vigorously and ran.

"Shit. I forgot to ask him why he's bloody. Some part of me doesn't want to know." Fred turned to Hermione, who had tears running down her face. Her bottom lip was trembling, along with her entire body.

He didn't realize, but she was squeezing his hand so hard it started to hurt and go numb. He looked her in the eyes.

"Hermione," She looked past him, not all there, it seemed. Fred started to worry. "Hermione!" He gently shook her. "Fuck."

Fred picked her up and went as fast he could to the Gryffindor common room. When he came in, everyone was crying, shouting, or completely silent.

Thankfully, everyone had gotten past their drunkenness and remained focused – sort of. Fred ordered Harry and Ron to follow him upstairs.

"What happened?" Harry asked as Fred put her down on her bed.

"I don't know what emotionally happened," He said, looking at them. "But I think she lost all sanity when Dean simply said 'Voldemort'."

Hermione suddenly sat up, taking a sharp breath and breathing hard. She had tears in her eyes, and stared up at the three boys.

"Harry, I think you should take this," Fred said, nodding at him.

"No," All of them looked at Ron, who took a deep breath. "I'll do it."

"Ron do you think—", Harry started.

"I said NO!" He yelled. "I'm sorry. I… I promise I'll be okay. I promise _she'll_ be okay."

"Alright." Harry said. He put a hand on Ron's shoulder and left the room.

"Thanks, brother." Fred told Ron. He left as well, feeling very proud of his little brother.

* * *

"Hey, brother!" George yelled to Fred. He seemed unnaturally happy.

"You're still a bit affected by the firewhiskey, huh?" Fred asked him skeptically.

"Maybe…" George said as he walked away. Fred laughed at him.

"Brother!" He called. George turned around and looked at him.

"Be safe." Fred said to him. He was afraid of losing his brother, like he almost did the last time this happened. George smiled.

"Who are you and what have you done with Fred?" He laughed, putting a hand on his brother's shoulder and looking at him. "You really think I'm going somewhere without you? You must be mad."

Fred smiled. "I guess I am."


End file.
